A TASTE OF FRANCE
These owners sensitively restored the interior of a Périgord farmhouse, updating it for the 21st century while retaining its authentic Gallic flavour
When Gloria and Eric Stewart moved into their 18th-century farmhouse, high above a valley in Périgord, southwest France, it was far from habitable. It was an empty shell that had been unoccupied for more than 35 years and, before that, only in two ground-floor rooms as there was no upper level. The rest of the long building consisted of two barns, one a tobacco drying chamber, and both with earth floors. And there was no sanitation.
To turn this blank canvas into an authentic 18th-century interior the Stewarts had to decide on criteria that would suit how they would live in the house. ‘We wanted a large kitchen, a dining room and a large sitting room. Upstairs we needed three bedrooms, one en suite, and an additional bathroom,’ says Gloria. ‘This was tricky because we were building into the roof space. Fortunately, our French builders were on our wavelength, but it was still 18 months before we could move in.’
The plans Eric drew up gave them a good-sized kitchen by knocking down the wall between the two once-occupied rooms. Some of the space was released to a laundry room and a small corridor into the first barn, which was divided into a hallway with a staircase to the new first floor, and a dining room. The tobacco barn became their sitting room and 18th-century glazed double doors were sourced to fit between the two spaces. A special feature of Eric’s plan is the enfilade. This tradition in French architecture aligns rooms and doorways giving a long perspective, in this case from the sitting room through to the kitchen.
At the heart of the renovation was retaining a sense that this building was a farmhouse. ‘We’ve avoided grandeur,’ says Gloria. ‘For instance, we put wood cladding on some ceilings and the sitting room walls, a feature we’ve seen in modest buildings in this area.’ Doors, fireplaces and floor tiles that match the period of the house have been sourced from reclamation yards. ‘To help control our budget we bought kitchen cabinets from Ikea and modified them by distressing the fronts with paint, adding old handles and fitting an oak worktop.’
The decorative finishes are simple, even rustic, and it is the furniture, pictures and textiles that Gloria has collected during the time they’ve lived in France that bring distinction to every room. However, when it comes to sofas and chairs, Gloria always buys these in England. ‘The French tend to have formal chairs and sit upright,’ she says. ‘There’s no tradition here of sinking into big sofas like we do in England.’
Of course, it is much more than comfy sofas that sum up the charm of this restored farmhouse. ‘With its connected rooms, this is a home for easy living,’ says Gloria, ‘and that was always our plan.’
‘I love the romance of bringing together two early pieces from different periods’